


Matchmaking for Professionals

by Mother_of_Pearl



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Fluff and Humor, Fluff and Smut, Getting Together, Humor, Idiots in Love, M/M, Matchmaking, Mutual Pining, Natasha Romanov Is a Good Bro, Natasha Romanov Knows All, Oblivious Steve Rogers, Oblivious Tony Stark, Past Pepper Potts/Tony Stark, Pepper Potts & Natasha Romanov Friendship, Pepper Potts Is a Good Bro, Post-Avengers (2012), Stony Freeform, and so does Pepper, and the Guys are just Idiots in Love, loki is a little shit
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-08
Updated: 2019-04-14
Packaged: 2019-10-24 14:39:54
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,302
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17706167
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mother_of_Pearl/pseuds/Mother_of_Pearl
Summary: Tony is pining. Steve is pining.Natasha and Pepper are so done with this shit and plan to set them up.But it seems that Tony and Steve are just too dumb to get it, until the most unexpected person shows up to help the girls out of their misery...High Five, ladies.





	1. Fake it 'til you make it.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for stumbling over this ff!  
> I will try my best to update fast, but I can't guarantee bc of work.  
> Pls excuse typos and spelling errors, english is not my mother language!  
> <3  
> Also, my ass is still stuck in 2012...
> 
> Fluff, idiots and eventually smut.

Tony Stark had a problem.

He was pining. Lucky for him and his environment, he was a pro at dealing with problems, he could probably write the ultimate master thesis about solving them. So he did not _really_ have a problem, thank you very much.

Rule number one if you're a Stark with something that might resemble a problem: Solve it.

Rule number two: If you can't solve it, ignore it 'til you can.

Unfortunately for his sanity and especially for Pepper Potts' patience, his little problem was un-ignorable, as the subject of it was a 6.3ft tall, way too well built, blond and blue soldier. The man with the plan from the forties. The one and only American hero. Every school girl's -and probably every other women's- wet dream. The personification of all good in the world.

Steve Rogers

That's why Mr. Anthony Edward Stark, self-proclaimed genius, billionaire, (former) playboy and philanthropist, decided to stick to rule number three (secretly his favourite and most used): Fake it 'til you make it.

Tony had lived his whole fucking life with those simple rules. He had endured his abusive asshole of a father, stood his ground in the deadly business world, survived god-forsaken Afghanistan and Obadiah Stane and built himself a high-tech prosthesis by the way. He had defeated Vanko and destroyed Hammer Industries at once and, for fucks sake, had flown a fucking nuke in a shitty wormhole while motherfucking aliens were attacking Manhattan.  
That for, Tony Stark was a perfect example for a stubborn bastard who just not gave up regardless of what the problem was. He would survive and get over his stupid, idiotic, hilarious crush for his stoic, trustworthy, outrageously handsome, smart, adorably gorgeous, sickening good-natured and heroic -he should probably stop here- team leader and friend. 'Cause that was all what Steve would ever be, as long as Tony didn't fuck it up: A friend. A friend who Tony would do everything for to keep him by his side, even if that meant neglecting his own feelings.

 He sighed. Black Sabbath blared from the speakers in the workshop where Tony was currently slouching in his favourite swivel chair, but it was not enough to silence the circulating thoughts in Tony's head. Absentmindedly he sipped that gross smoothie that Dum-E had made him with all his ~~heart~~ motherboard, while he updated some calculations for the newest version of the Quinjet and fiddling with some new prototype for Clint's arrows. Well, at least he tried to concentrate on updating them. But everything he managed to think about was a certain man. Tony furrowed his brows as he swallowed the green liquid. He really had to buy Dum-E a recipe book for smoothies sometime.

Whenever he saw Steve in the communal areas of the Avengers tower, may it be while Cap was sipping his Earl Grey tea -of course it had to be fucking Earl Grey- in the kitchen or reading the newspapers, sketching the skyline of New York on the balcony, working out in the gym or, hell, even if the guy was just napping on the couch, Tony's heart skipped a beat like he was trapped in some cheesy teenage romance movie and couldn't escape. Not that he really tried his hardest to escape...

Yet, Tony tried his utmost to stay professional and keep his cool around the Captain, but nevertheless he lived with a bunch of super heroes in a tower and the chances of him being caught off guard, while gawking openly at Steve were frightening high. And with Natascha constantly at Steve's side, he had a fucking reason to be afraid of loosing his balls and their friendship for real, if he ever tried to make a move on Steve. After all, nobody in their right mind would dare to meddle with Captain America's or Black Widow's business. Especially since the two SHIELD agents were apparently dating.

Secretly the genius was hoping that his constant bickering, unnerving flirting and sarcastic comments directed towards Steve would conceal his true, unrequitted feelings. This way Steve couldn't hear Tony's heart shatter, every time the engineer saw the two love-birds sitting together, smiling, chatting, being all intimate and probably the most perfect, efficient and deadly couple possible, while, at the same time, it made him want to throw up internally.

Tony emptied his smoothie and scrunched up his nose. That stuff really was disgusting as shit -no offence, Dum-E- and didn't help him dealing with his heartbreaking crush at all. He should have chosen the scotch… But then Steve would have been angry again. And he valued Steve and their friendly relationship of trust more than he loved a good whiskey.

A tired yawn escaped Tony. He rubbed his free hand over his face and glanced through his fingers towards the hilariously expensive designer clock on the wall. He had been down in the workshop for almost 40 hours. No wonder his stomach was grumbling as fuck, the last time he had eaten something substantial had been two days ago. He should probably quit for today and take a nap.

Still, -getting back to the topic at hand- Tony should get his head out of the clouds, man up and leave this pathetic episode -that already lasted longer than he wanted to admit- of his shitty live behind him and move on, after all soldier boy was the personification of _straight_. No way in hell did that larger than life guy swing the other way. And even if some -probably never happening- day Steve would bet for the other team, he sure as fuck would choose anybody beside Tony, that's for sure.

He sighed again. Steve was already distracting Tony enough when he was just in the same room as him, but the genius' imagination was giving him true hell, as the memories of Steve were haunting him down every time he allowed himself to think about something not work-related.

 Last week Tony had accidentally knocked his beloved, precious, life-saving coffee off his workbench table, because he was too busy spacing out and remembering how Steve's muscles had flexed beneath his skin when he had been sparring with Clint in the gym a short while ago. Not to mention his azure blue eyes that seemed to see right through him, _especially_ when Tony tried to escape his piercing gaze after a battle or when he had messed something up again. His friendly pat on Tony's back that only lasted a heartbeat but felt like a small eternity, whenever Tony explained him something new, regarding the modern technology around the tower. And his perfectly symmetric face, that scrunched up adorably, whenever Tony would pick up on him about his lacking knowledge of pop culture references. His honest-to-goodness laugh when the team was watching another new comedy or Disney movie at the weekly team bonding evening. His cooking skills and the warm smile that bloomed on his face when Tony complimented him on it, as he himself couldn't even make scrambled eggs without burning down the whole kitchen. Steve's soft voice with a hint of worry when he asked Tony how he felt after a mission, still dressed in his Captain America suit. That suit. Oh god…

 Tony crossed his arms on the table in front of him and his head fell with a thud upon the blueprints and schematics, that were scattered all over the table top. He was too tired to concentrate on shooing his daydreams away. At least Natascha couldn't kill him for dreaming about Steve, as she hadn't picked up how to read minds from Loki. Yet, at least.

 Either way, he shouldn't be thinking about the suit, especially not when his brain wasn't working flawless because of his sleep deficit. Whenever his mind wandered to the god-damn suit, he couldn't suppress the picture of Steve's enticing, diverting, luscious body in it. His figure was probably already engraved in Tony's memory in every possible angle. Tony wanted to run his hands down Steve's spine, feel the smooth golden skin beneath his rough fingertips and the muscles twitch with anticipation once his breath would tickle Steve's lumbar region. He wondered what it would be like to feel Steve inside of him. Surely his dick hadn't been an exception when he got the super soldier serum. Oh god…

 A low moan escaped his throat, but was thankfully swallowed by the still loudly playing music. Shifting uncomfortable in his chair, Tony adjusted his head on the table top.

 He had seen the Captain shirtless once, when he had been working out -a teenage dream of his had come true- but never with less than pyjama pants. So, everything between Steve's bellybutton -such a sexy one to boost- and his ankles was left to Tony's imagination. And he had way too much of that.

 But the 40 hours he had spent non-stop in the workshop finally caught up to him. Tony yawned and subconsciously registered that JARVIS had turned the volume of the music down and cranked up the heat in the spacious room, before his eyes fell shut and he drifted away. Probably dreaming about the guy he'd never get.

 Good thing, that Steve was as oblivious about Tony's pining as humanly possible.


	2. Of Smoothies and Sandwiches

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh my god. What's that? A new chapter? Holy guacamole...
> 
> Ah, by the way, I forgot to add:  
> This is un-betaed, all mistakes are my own. Sorry  
> Still; enjoy! <3

Steve Rogers had a problem.

He was pining. Lucky for him and his environment, he was a professional at dealing with problems, he could probably write a complete reference book regarding that matter for every single department of SHIELD. So he did not _really_ have a problem. He'd just rely on his experiences to stay composed and keep his cool in the eye of certain (at least for his heart, at this rate) death.  
  
The silent humming of the elevator came to a stop as it arrived at his floor and the automatic doors slid open in front of him with a quiet sound, pulling him away from his line of thoughts, at least for a few seconds before they came crashing back onto him.  
  
Steve took a deep breath, trying to calm down his heartbeat, that quickened whenever he thought about the resident, certified genius. Remembering the first time he had met Tony, the son and successor of his deceased friend Howard Stark, Steve would have never believed that he'd become friends with this arrogant, egocentric and sarcastic boaster, who knew absolutely everything regarding every single matter better than anyone else. Now, almost one and a half years later, Tony was his right hand man in combat, his most trusted teammate, his anchor in this new world and age which was still really confusing him sometimes, his best friend. And if he was honest with himself, even more than a friend, on Steve's part.  
  
Steve stepped into the elevator, not bothering to press the button for the doors to close. Once he had entered, he raised his blue gaze to the silver ceiling, more out of habit, than because of necessity.  
"JARVIS?"  
  
"Good evening, Captain. How may I be of help to you?" The AI greeted him with his British accent.  
  
Steve smiled. He was still amazed by how Tony managed to program something resembling emotions into his computers. "Can you please take me to the floor Tony is currently on? I want to check up on him, since he didn't show up to dinner and lunch the past two days. He even skipped breakfast, and we all know what a moody morning person he can be without something to eat."  
  
"Of course, Captain. It'd be my pleasure." Came the immediate answer. A few heartbeats later he continued. "Excuse me, but Sir hasn't exited his workshop for nearly 42 hours, if I may add. He has been living of coffee and Dum-E's green smoothies since then. Would it be possible for you to look after him once more?”  
  
Steve sighed, that was so typical of Tony. He should have known better than to trust the brunette to take care of himself. "Of course. Thanks J, I'll take over from here on."

“I am grateful for your concern, Captain Rogers."

“It's not a big deal JARVIS. Anyway, thanks for notifying me.”

“You are most welcome, Captain.”

If the genius decided to survive two days with Dum-E's smoothies, then Steve should definitely drag him upstairs. Tony hated them. Though the man had never mentioned his dislike, Steve knew nevertheless from the way Tony's face scrunched up adorably into a little forced smile, every time he took a sip of the green liquid. He supposed that Tony drank them for Dum-E's sake, the bot had declared making smoothies his sole purpose, ever since he had been banned from using the fire-extinguisher.  
  
The elevator started to whir again, Steve felt the motion more than he heard it.  
He shoved his free hand in his pocket and glanced down at the sandwiches on the blue plate in his other hand. Bacon, egg, tomato, mayonnaise and salad leaves. Tony's favorite. By now he knew more of Tony's favorites than any normal friend probably would.

Steve had noticed a lot about the smaller man in the last 10 months, since he became aware of his own feelings. Tony was undeniably a narcist. He claimed to love only himself, his bots and coffee. But Steve knew him better than to believe that. For every missile, bomb and weapon his genius mind had ever created, Tony tried to make up thrice. He launched charity organizations, donated, organised, supported and rebuilt damaged areas. Steve had lost count of all the sleepless nights Tony had spent in the workshop, designing and updating the suits, gadgets and equipment for every single member of the team. He was the first one to panic if anybody was hurt, the last one to leave someone behind and the most pushy when it came to training and improvements for everyone's safety. But if one dared to point that out, Tony immediately switched his false smile on and pretended not to care at all, making sarcastic jokes about expensive cleansing of bloodstains on carpeted floor or something like that.

The elevator came to a halt, silently the electronic doors slid open and allowed Steve to enter the long hallway that led him down to Tony's workshop. Steve was here more often, now that he was purposely seeking the smaller man's company. When it was just the two of them spending their time together surrounded by computers and robots, Steve caught sight of Tony's true colors more often, relishing the genius' constant flow of words when he was up the elbows in his element.

But Steve hated his false grin, plastered all over Tony's face. When his features twisted and his eyes lost it's honest and cheeky sparkle, as he shut down in order to hide his fragile feelings on the inside. It was his camera smile, that he had reserved for official meetings, paparazzi and business associates. A bit too much teeth and not enough laughter lines around his dark, intelligent eyes. It was completely fake, the genius had perfected it, but Steve was one of the few people who knew the difference instantly at the first glance. Tony's true smile, when he was just Tony, not Iron Man, nor CEO of Star Industries, nor the son of Howard Stark, was pure delight. His turbulent history in life showed itself in every small wrinkle around his narrowed eyes which twinkled with joy and a little bit of cockiness when he directed his brown gaze towards Steve. And the soldier longed to see every single of the engineer's smirks that danced on his lips.

He wanted to feel Tony's lips beneath his fingertips, when the corners of his mouth would curl up, the scratch of his goatee against his face when he'd kiss him, slow and gentle. His hands ached with the desire to card through dark strands of hair, to feel that lean body against his own, to trace his scarred chest with the reactor in the middle. Would Tony shiver underneath his hands? Would he manage to keep his cool? Or would he lie there with him, all his emotions, hopes and fears open for Steve to explore and to treasure?

Sometimes he wondered what it would be like to enter Tony. To possess him completely, to show him how to be honest with himself, so he wouldn't need to put on that faked smile. He wanted to give Tony the freedom to take off his facades. But that was just wishful thinking.

Tony was as straight as a man could be. The countless women he had slept with in his life before Pepper were proof enough. Right after the Chitauri attack Tony and Pepper had broken up. Video footage existed about their ugly argument and it had hurt Steve badly to see their once confident and lively teammate drunk and depressed for long days, which felt like centuries.

It was hard for Tony to find his spirits again. But ever since he had had a long talk with Pepper and without shouting and alcohol, the two of them were the best of friends again. Well, at least that was what they claimed to be. But Steve saw the trust and love in their eyes whenever they were together. The determination, affection and honest-to-goodness smile in Pepper's face and the fact that Tony almost never, hid behind his walls and masks in front of the redhead. She was good for him.

Yet Steve had caught himself more than just once, staring at the two of them, longing for that closeness. He had to pull out all the stops to refrain from being too indiscreet in his admiration. Pepper Potts was a tornado on high heels and he valued his life and his friendship with Tony too much, than to provoke her fury by making a move at the engineer. Not to mention that he lived with a bunch of super heroes in a tower and the chances of him being caught off guard by his teammates, while staring openly at Tony were frightening high.

Steve suppressed a sigh. Bare walls, that felt always a little cold, accompanied the soldier down until he stood before of the gigantic glass front, which was luckily not in shut down mode as Steve had feared. With his free hand, he keyed in his access code and entered the workshop. Steve had expected to be deafened by heavy metal once the glass doors opened but silence welcomed him instead. Looking around, he stepped further into the mess of wires, machines, metal and holograms all over the place and was greeted by a happily buzzing Dum-E with You in tow. He gently petted the claw of the clumsy bot.

“Hey, buddie. Can you tell me where Tony is?” Steve's low voice echoed slightly from the walls. The bots were already used to him coming down here, so they didn't even hesitate and tugged on his shirt.

Following Dum-E around the racks to the main workbench, his eyes finally caught sight of Tony sleeping in a rather uncomfortable looking position on his table. Approaching the slumped figure, a small smile spread on his face. Just as JARVIS said: The oil and grease stains on Tony's old shirt and ripped jeans, the countless empty mugs and glasses and the disheveled mop of dark hair were clear indicators that the genius didn't take a break for the last two days.

The blonde put the plate with the fresh sandwiches down on the blueprints, that Tony was currently napping on and gently rubbed his hand over the smaller man's back.

“Tony? Hey, Tony...” Gently shaking his shoulder, Steve tried to wake the other without startling him. “Tony, wake up. You're going to have a terrible backache, if you sleep like this.”

A rough moan escaped Tony and his nose scrunched up adorably. A small shiver ran down Steve's spine as he heard the throaty sound and tingle crept over his skin, making him overly aware of Tony's open vulnerability. His eyes found Tony's lips slightly parted. Fascinated, he unconsciously bent down and watched the genius' sleeping face. Long, dark eyelashes fluttered against slightly tanned skin. Unruly strands of hair framed his clear-cut facial features, accentuated by Tony's characteristic goatee.

If it hadn't been for Dum-E's curious tugging on Steve's sleeve, he couldn't have guaranteed that he would have been able to hold back from kissing Tony right there. Instead he handed the plate with the untouched sandwiches to Dum-E so he would take them back to kitchen and turned back to Tony, who was still sound asleep.

Thanks to his serum improved physique it was an easy task to scoop Tony gently up in his arms. Carrying him bridal style to the elevator he felt the smaller man shift in his arms and he cradled the sleeping figure carefully but tightly. Calloused fingers clung to his shirt and Tony nestled his face against Steve's chest. The soldier had to suppress a chuckle when he felt Tony's nose tickle him.

The journey to Tony's bedroom was way too short for Steve's liking. Still, all the way up in the elevator, he feared Tony would wake up, startled by Steve's nervously beating heart. He was so hopelessly in love, it was a wonder Tony hadn't already noticed. A mournful sigh escaped him, as he took in Tony's sleeping figure once again. Taking his time putting Tony to bed, the blonde's thought were circulating again about the man in his arms he'd never get.

Exiting Tony's bedroom with a longing gaze, he tried to recapture his composure. Good thing, that Tony was as oblivious about Steve's pining as humanly possible.


	3. Project: Blueberry Meets Cherry

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay! I'll just leave this chap here, disappear again and hope you enjoy it! <3
> 
> Not beta'ed as usual. I hope I didn't make any grave mistakes, I kinda rushed this chap...

The dark designer jeans and deep red shirt hugged her tightly, accentuating the curves of her figure, so that probably every male employee of Stark Industries was distracted for at least half a minute once the beautiful Russian passed by. Dark red hair danced on her shoulders as Natasha rounded the next corner and entered the office of Pepper Potts without bothering to halt or knock beforehand. Silently she closed the doors behind her and walked up to Pepper's desk, to sink down on one of the comfy chairs in front. Crossing her long legs, she waited patiently until Tony's PA finished her call with another company's CEO.  
  
Pepper's office was not as big as Tony's but it was still a large room with various pieces of modern art decorating the plain white walls, bookshelves and stacks of papers on every surface. A small coffeemaker stood in the back corner right beside a probably expensive bag and the clichéd big ficus tree in a white pot.  
  
Carding her slender fingers through her slightly curly hair, Natasha closed her eyes for a moment to relish the quiet that filled the room. Pepper's office had become one of her most frequented places in the last month's, ever since the two redheads started project "Blueberry Meets Cherry" (or "Idiots", as Natasha secretly called it).  
  
A few minutes had passed when Pepper finally ended her phone call with a slightly annoyed undertone in her normally cheerful voice. She buried her face in her hands for some heartbeats and exhaled slowly. Brushing back the few strands of strawberry blond hair that had fallen into her line of vision she recaptured her warm smile and stood up from behind her desk to greet Natasha with open arms.  
  
"Nat! Oh, it's so good to see you! How was your day so far?" Hugging each other tightly the two women chuckled.  
  
"I think that's my line!" Natasha answered with a wink.  
Sitting back in the chair after greeting her friend, she sighed. Her usual stony and expressionless face became soft and a gentle smile tugged at her lips. It was so easy to be herself with Pepper, the two had become the best of friends after the battle of New York when the Avengers moved into the tower.  
They could spent hours and hours sipping coffee, strolling through the city and talking and chatting about their turbulent days. Natasha would tell some story's of her very first missions and Pepper always had a funny anecdote about her first years working for Tony.  
Speaking of Tony…

“It was just the same as always up 'til now, you know? Dragging Clint's ass out of his bed, sparring with Steve in the gym and order some new SHIELD agents around-” Natasha started, when Pepper snorted at her choice of words.

“I guess you wanted to say 'torture' instead of 'order around'.” Pepper grinned at her over the rim of her cup of coffee.

“You know me too well.” The Russian assassin admitted, a mischievous glint in her green eyes.

The two of them shared a knowing look and started to chuckle again. Placing her cup on the nearest pile of documents, Pepper started to sort through her papers again but abandoned the task quickly. Curiosity got the better of her. Leaning over the plate of her desk, she crossed her arms over her chest and eyed her friend expectantly.

“Okay, I'm gonna ask. How did it go? Did they finally sort things out?” Grinning like a schoolgirl, she bit her bottom lip in anticipation.

Natasha let out a puff of breath and let her head fall backwards onto the back of the chair for a short moment. Sitting up to face her friend again, a slight frown appeared on her face and Pepper knew immediately what she didn't even have to say out loud. Groaning the smile disappeared from her face and she fell back in her chair. Grabbing and holding onto her cup of coffee, she glanced over to Natasha awaiting the detailed report of their latest failed mission regarding “Blueberry Meets Cherry”.

“Those two are idiots. Simply as that.” The redhead started, shrugging. “Tony was in his workshop for the last two days, only living off of Dum-E's gross smoothies -”

Pepper snorted a laugh. She knew about the non-existing talent of the bot regarding smoothies.

“- that's why I urged Steve to take care of him. He's grumpy when he didn't get enough sleep _and_ food and Steve is the only one who can enter Tony's self-proclaimed dungeon without getting thrown out, the instant he steps inside.” Natasha continued, while rolling her eyes. “But Tony, that idiot, fell asleep on his workbench, right before Steve came down. You know Steve, he'd never wake Tony up if it wasn't necessary. So no talking, but our favorite solder carried him up to his bedroom. All the way.”

Pepper's thin eyebrow shot up, a smirk dancing on her lips.

“Bridal style.” Natasha finished, a lopsided grin in her face.

Pepper's giggles were contagious and a few heartbeats later, both women chuckled in union like teens. Another groan escaped Pepper once she had managed to get over her laughing fit. Rubbing the bridge of her nose she closed her eyes for a second.

“That was attempt number 38 wasn't it?” She muttered. “I can't stand Tony's whining anymore. He is such an oblivious idiot. He calls every four hours to ramble about Steve. Steve here, Steve there, Steve everywhere. I can't work like this. 'Have you seen Steve's blue eyes when he's fascinated by something?' 'Do you know that Steve has a birthmark on the nape of his neck?' 'Can you imagine someone looking so joyful when helping old ladies crossing the street like Steve does?' Not to mention his constant drooling over his body. 'Those abs!' 'His long legs!' 'Who the fuck sells Steve those way too tight white shirts, I can't concentrate at all.'” Pepper sighed. “Why can't he just get his head out of his ass and confess? It's not like he's a virgin.”

“If Tony's a virgin, then I'm married to the late Queen of Wakanda.” Natasha joked as she stood up from the comfy chair and made her way through the room to the coffeemaker. “I'm also tired of watching Steve's pining. He act's like a mother hen. Tony's a grown man and still Steve's taking care of him as if he was a porcelain doll. He's drawn more portraits of Tony than skylines of New York, Los Angeles and Las Vegas combined, and he has three folders full of skylines. Whenever we're on duty together he would change the subject once the important parts are finished. 'Did you see Tony?' 'Where's Tony?' 'I haven't seen Tony all day.'” Natasha fetched her hot coffee, sipping it without making a face at the temperature. “' Whenever Tony gestures like that, I want to grab his hands and hold them close.' 'I love the way Tony's eyes sparkle when he works on another invention.' 'Why does Tony always wear those tight pants, it distracts me and I can't focus.'”

“We need another plan.” Pepper concluded, setting her empty cup aside. “Workshop didn't work out. Again. How about meeting in the living room? We could try to get the others out of the tower so the two of them would be alone in front of the TV. Only one bowl of popcorn, sharing a blanket, a cheesy movie?”

“We tried that three weeks ago, didn't work out because a certain birdbrain got sick and slept on the couch for a week instead of in his own bed.” Natasha finished her own cup of coffee and returned it to the machine. “But let's give it another shot. I know for sure there's a new burger place a few streets down the tower. Clint's been begging me to join him for dinner there and Bruce and Thor would never decline an invitation if there are burger and fries. If you can get Tony to come home to the tower late enough from SI, so that we will be gone when he arrives, then I can get Hill or Fury to keep Steve at SHIELD a bit longer than usual. This way the two of them would be alone and hopefully awake enough to sort things out.”

Walking back to the desk, where Pepper still glared holes in her mess of papers, she chuckled and crossed her arms gracefully.

Pepper leaned back in her chair and grinned up. Matchmaking was a hassle, but it surely had its highlights for her memoirs.

“Alright. It's not the best plan but any plan is better than no plan. Especially when the other alternative is to listen to another unannounced anthem about Steve's ass over the phone, while I'm attending a meeting of the World Security Council. And before you ask: Yes, the phone call was put on speaker.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nat and Pepper are a dangerous combo.  
> Tony... Steve... be prepared. XD


	4. Help me, Obi-Wan Kenobi. You're my only hope.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so deeply sorry for leaving this fanfiction for so long.  
> I always wanted to continue but yeah... There were Cosplays to be finished, friends to visit and so on...  
> But still, here it is. Somehow this chapter became longer than planned, I hope you still like the result.  
> And yes: I am a Star Wars nerd. XD
> 
> Please note:  
> English is not my mother language and this had not been beta-ed.  
> Thanks <3

"Bruce? Brucie-bear? Thorin? Hey, where the fuck is everyone?! Birdbrain, if you hide in the vents again I'm gonna shoot your sorry ass! JARVIS, where's the team, the whole tower is empty! Even Nat and Steve are gone!" Tony paced through the communal areas, searching for his teammates. He had just come home from several meetings at Stark Industries, he was tired because he didn't sleep the night before, he was hungry like a wolf, he was annoyed because Pepper had made him stay longer than necessary and now he was apparently on his own with no one he could complain to about his exhausting day and no fresh and hot coffee was to be seen. He pulled his tie down and unbuttoned the first three buttons of his blue dress shirt while he made his way to the elevator to get to his personal floor.  
  
"Good evening, Sir." JARVIS answered, ignoring Tony's constant rambling. "Unfortunately I must inform you that Agent Romanoff has taken Agent Barton, Dr Banner and Mr Odinson with her for dinner. You are alone for the time being until Captain Rogers returns from SHIELD HQ. Shall I order Dum-E to prepare something to eat for you while you wait or would you prefer your favorite Chinese take out?"  
  
A groan escaped Tony as he listened to JARVIS while throwing his suit on the mattress in his bedroom to change into sweats and a plain tee. "God, no. No more cooking bots. I'd rather burn the kitchen myself, than eat bricks of coal again... And I had so much Chinese in the last weeks, I can probably speak Mandarin by now. I can manage a toast and a cup of coffee on my own."

“As you wish, sir.”  
  
Lazily scratching his belly underneath his shirt and suppressing a yawn, Tony went back to the communal kitchen and started to search for his favorite mug, just to realize that he left it in the workshop two days ago. Mumbling more to himself than to JARVIS he left the room and headed towards the elevator, his bare feet freezing with the cold ground beneath his soles. Arriving in his workshop he was tempted to screw dinner for some hours of crafting, but discarded the thought quickly when JARVIS announced Steve's return to the tower. Blond and beautiful definitely won over metal and mechanics. Especially since the two of them were apparently alone in the tower. He internally thanked the goddess of robotics for this rare lucky coincidence and prayed that the rest of the team would stay out as long as possible. This way he could stare and admire and drool as much as he wanted without the risk of being caught by his watchful team and Steve's scary girlfriend. Running down the hallway back to the elevator, he swore under his breath and had to turn around halfway and jump back to the workshop to fetch his mug. Steve made him forget his beloved coffee... He was in deep shit.

Catching his breath, Tony silently entered the kitchen and placed his mug on the counter. Steve, who had been standing by the fridge, his back towards the door, humming a to Tony unknown melody, spun around, obviously startled and stared at Tony for a heartbeat before he let out a slightly shaky breath.

“Hello there.” Steve greeted him with a genuine smile.

“General Kenobi! You are a bold one.” Tony answered nonchalant, grinning at the confused expression on Steve's face, who was still standing in front of the open fridge.

“General who? What are you talking about, Tony?” Steve asked puzzled, an adorably confused smile tugging on his lips. Turning around to face the smaller man fully, his blue eyes and curious face feigned innocence, while he tried to secretly shove the plate with fresh pancakes and (Tony's!) blueberries behind his broad back, in a futile attempt to hide them from the brunet's attentive gaze.

“Oh young padawan, not introduced to the force you have been? Inform the Jedi order of such crime we must!” Tony clutched at his chest, a mixture of playful shock and amusement playing on his face while cleaning his mug and pouring himself another cup of coffee, once he was done. It had become a secret hobby of his to introduce the blonde soldier to movies and franchises he had missed while napping for 7 decades in an ice cube. “If you share those blueberry pancakes, that you're trying to hide, with me, I might be grateful enough to let you be part of those knowing how to use the force.”

Tony tilted his head to catch a glimpse of the stack of fresh pancakes and the mountain of berries on the plate behind Steve and a smug grin danced on his lips when a slight pink flush colored the taller mans cheeks. Sipping his coffee he watched Steve fidget for a short moment, until the soldier sighed good-natured in defeat and turned around to the cupboard to get another plate.

“Alright, you win.” He chuckled. Dividing the fresh baked goods into half, as well as the berries, he turned his back towards Tony once again.

Missing to answer, Tony stared as he watched Steve's muscles move beneath the way too tight tee he wore. He definitely had to find out who sold his personal eye candy those sinful pieces of clothing and reward that person. In the back of his mind he registered that someone was apparently trying to speak to him, but those hips and the curve of that back were so distracting at the moment...

“- Tony? Tony, are you listening?”

Shaking his head slightly, Tony woke from his daze, tore his gaze from Steve's alluring figure and found his personal space suddenly invaded by said Mr Blond-Blue-Beautiful.

“Yes, darling?” He answered automatically. Blinking up into Steve's baby blues, he slapped himself mentally, when he saw the small frown forming between the blond's eyebrows. Oblivious of the faint pink shade high on his cheeks, Tony hastily backtracked. “Ah sorry, sorry. Didn't mean to bug you, I know that you don't like the nicknames. Old habits die hard, ya know? Sorry, no offense meant. You coming? We wanted to watch Star Wars, you need to be introduced to the Millennium Falcon, that thing is almost as cool as the Iron Man suit.”

Mumbling a quiet thanks, he made grabby hands at one of the plates which were presented in front of him and fled the suddenly weird atmosphere in the kitchen to take shelter on his beloved couch in front of the huge screen.

“JARVIS, pull up _A New Hope_ for us, dim the lights and turn on the heat a bit.”

Cradling his pancakes to his chest, he fetched a blanket on his way through the room, ignoring the raised eyebrow that Steve was sporting while watching him.

Some awkward moments later both men were finally seated together in front of the flat-screen, the orchestra theme filled the room and the yellow lines rolled in front of a black background. Tony did his best to not glance too much or too obvious at Steve, but seeing the Captain so captivated by the universe that now unfolded in front of him, made it hard to control his treacherous eyes and he allowed a small smile to bloom on his lips, when he found himself confronted with Steve's pure fascination about seeing the Millennium Falcon enter the hyperspace for the first time. To be quite fair, Tony knew the Star Wars movies inside out, so instead of paying attention to the cinematic masterpiece of old-school animation, he busied his fidgeting hands with eating the delicious pancakes Steve had provided and silently admired the man beside him.

Steve's pale skin was illuminated with the faint blue glow of the movie. A single blonde strand of hair grazed his forehead and his lips shifted slightly when he smiled at Princess Leia's sarcastic remark about Luke's height, as the latter entered her cell at the Death Star.

Not for the first time Tony wondered in silence what it would feel like to be embraced by Steve's strong arms, to fall asleep in his presence. He bet it would be wonderful to feel the shelter of someone he could trust with his life, to be able to let go and let someone else take the lead at least for once, to feel the comfort of understanding regarding his dangerous but necessary lifestyle. His short and bittersweet relationship with wonderful and independent Pepper had been an emotional rollercoaster of ups and downs for her and him. Both not willing to sacrifice their way of living and both being too strong-headed to accept the others mindset. Tony had called a halt before it had been too late so save what was left. After some awkward weeks and a lot of expensive shoes for a special PA, they had been able to rebuild their friendship just like it had been before the whole “Let's date”-incident. But with Steve, he somehow felt like all those small irks and quirks of their lifes wouldn't bother him like they did with Pepper. Tony didn't understand why he felt like that, it was not logical and this made it all the more difficult in his mind.

Reminiscing, Tony shifted slightly and tore his gaze from Steve's face when he noticed the Death Star blowing up on screen. Great, he had spent three quarters of the movie just staring at Steve. He changed his position on the couch a bit and finally the credits rolled over the screen. Like in slow motion Steve turned around to look at Tony with that breathtaking sparkle in his blue eyes that sent shivers down the smaller man's spine every single time. He managed to pull up his trademark smirk just in time and returned the grin that almost split the blonde's face in half.

“Tony, that movie was just-” He started, searching for the right words. “Please tell me there's a second one? What happened to Darth Vader? Who's that emperor they were talking about, is he some kind of king? And seriously, Tony, why did you never build you own lightsaber? I bet you could do that in your sleep?”

“Haha, calm down Steve.” Tony snickered. He had been pretty sure Steve would like the movie, but he was indeed surprised by that enthusiasm. Directing his words to JARVIS he continued. “Okay J, you heard the man. Let's make a Star Wars marathon. First _The Empire Strikes Back_ and after that _The Return Of The Jedi_.”

Steve beamed at him and grabbed his plate with the leftover blueberries a little tighter, as he snuggled deeper into the soft cushions. Once again the yellow lines and the iconic orchestra theme filled the space. Sliding down the back of the couch, Tony propped himself up on his elbow and felt the tiredness of the last all-nighter he pulled, settle in his bones. His eyelids drooped but he forced himself to stay awake, he didn't want to miss a single second together with Steve. Blinking to shoo away the itching, he tried to focus on Yoda who was currently bugging Luke and R2D2 on Dagobah. But somehow the ironic remake he had wanted to make, died on his lips as the darkness of the room spread all around him.

 

“-Tony? Wake up, please. The movies are over.”

All that Tony managed to get out was a mumbled “Oh shit” while he, hastily blinking, tried to abruptly sit up. Then his forehead suddenly and painfully collided with something firm, that had apparently been hovering above him. Swearing he clutched his head and fell back onto the couch. A quiet groan reached his ears and from the corner of his eyes, he saw a disheveled looking Steve sitting on the ground in front of the couch and holding onto his own forehead. Rubbing the aching spot, the brunet managed to collect himself enough to carefully sit up. The music and the credits still filled the room. Shit, he must have slept through almost both movies.

“Sorry, Steve. Didn't mean to headbutt you.” He pressed through clenched teeth, feeling the perfect specimen of a bruise approach.

“I would be worried if you planned to headbutt me while you were apparently sound asleep.” Steve chuckled. “You are by the way really adorable when you sleep like that. You look so innocent, as if butter wouldn't melt in your mouth.”

“Are you fucking kidding me? I'm not adorable! I'm the coolest guy you'll ever meet!” Tony shot back, fighting the embarrassing flush that threatened to take over. To reinforce his statement he reached out and poked the blonde soldier, who was still sitting on the ground, in his side.

“If you say so. But maybe you should not say that to me, but to the cool guy who was napping on the couch like a toddler, a few minutes ago.” A prodding finger found its way to Tony's ribcage in return. Being too late to dodge the attack, suddenly a girly squeal escaped Tony's lips at the touch. Squirming to get out of Steve's reach, he missed the mischievous glint in the others eyes, as he pulled the blanket higher up, in a futile attmept to discreetly cover up the unmanly reaction Steve had pulled from him.

“Tony? What was that?”

Tony could practically hear the smirk in Steve's voice.

“What was what? I've got no idea what you're talking about, Capsicle. Now that the movies are over, we should maybe call it a day and go to bed, ya know, wouldn't want to be responsible if you didn't get you beauty sleep. I'll just go back down to the workshop, I've got so many projects to finish, I think we should just forget anything ever happened and- Uwah!”

Another bold finger shut him up mid-sentence. This time, Tony didn't miss the grin on Steve's face. Rubbing his tingling side he shot the taller man a wary look.

“Are you ticklish, Tony?”

“What? No, of course not. I'm not ticklish, what makes you think that I'm- Aaaah Steve! Stop! Stop, not there! Aaahahaha! Get off me, Steve! Stop! Don't you dare! Nooo! Ahahaha!”

Laughing filled the room as Steve suddenly attacked various spots of Tony's upper body with curious fingers. Tony tried his very best to defend himself against the other's taller frame, which was not much, taking into consideration that the genius currently was a giggling and writhing mess in Steve's hands. Laughing and cackling he tried to crawl away from those dangerous digits, until he suddenly lost his ground under his feet (or in this case, his back) and found himself caught by strong arms, as he fell off the edge of couch. Panting and still laughing, they laid together on the floor in a heap of blankets and cushions and somehow the seconds seemed to pass especially slow. Still gasping for air, Tony stared up in those baby blue eyes, which were tinted with an unreadable expression, and almost lost himself in them again, when suddenly the door to the living room opened with a loud bang. A drunk Clint Barton stumbled into their comfortable darkness, accompanied by a booming Thor who still held onto his can of beer, an amused looking Bruce and on their heels a sour looking Natasha and an exasperated Pepper Potts to boost. The small group froze once they all had entered the living room. All eyes (minus Barton who was already snoring on Thor's shoulder) were fixated on their two team leaders / CEO and national icon laying on the floor, right up in each others personal space in an almost intimate looking embrace.

In addition, Tony noted inwardly, he was still panting and flushed from the previous tickle-war. To those who hadn't been present a few moments ago, it probably looked like something completely different was about to happen. Not that Tony wouldn't wish for that to happen, heaven forbid. Just that one of persons who had not been present a few moments ago, was one special Russian spy, who looked ready to castrate him that very second in front of the whole team, for touching her boyfriend, plus an also pretty pissed looking PA who would probably help the Russian by said castration, if he dared to make the wrong move, regarding said Russian spy's boyfriend. So, what does a Tony Stark do when confronted with the two most dangerous women in his live? Correct. He runs.

“My comrades in arms! It seems that my great friends and I have come to stumble across you in an inappropriate moment. My deepest apology on disturbing the two of you, while you spent your time alone together with your beloved.”

Steve looked up and blinked confused at the god and Tony took this at his opportunity. Now or never. And he was not prepared for never. Because never meant being castrated for not choosing now. Faster than he had expected himself to be, he picked up the remnants of his self-control, scrambled up from beneath Steve and fled the scenery within under seven seconds, all the while not meeting Steve's eyes, afraid and embarrassed of what he might find there. Mumbling a greeting and shooting especially Natasha and Pepper a hopefully convincing apologizing look, he dodged a probably bone-crushing hug from Thor and ducked out of the room.

Haunted by their surprised, almost perplexed gazes, he nearly ran down the hallway. Tony exhaled a breath he didn't notice he was holding, once he finally arrived in the quiet of the empty elevator. Sliding down the back wall, he sat on the ground, not feeling the coldness of the metal against his heated skin. Rubbing his hands over his face, he closed his eyes and felt the thumping in his forehead of the accidental headbutt. Every single spot where Steve had touched him was burning. He felt the tingle down his spine with every breath he took. If the team hadn't shown up in that moment, he wouldn't have been able to control himself further. Only heartbeats had separated him from throwing all his caution to the wind and kiss Steve. Only one kiss. One single touch of lips. One movement to ruin not only his friendship with the blonde, but also his relationship of trust he had finally managed to build with his team.

The elevator doors slid open and JARVIS welcomed him to his private suite. Falling face forwards onto his bed beside his suit from earlier, he sighed heavily, as he thought about the awkward next morning that was about to come.

“J, what am I supposed to do? This stupid, hilarious, teenage-like crush is getting worse and worse.” He mumbled into the cushion. “Do we have enough coffee to survive at least two months? Maybe I should just lock myself up in the workshop for the next three weeks, until a world-threatening situation pops up. Then Natasha won't have time to grill me.”

“To be quite honest, Sir” JARVIS unhelpfully supplied. “I've got a bad feeling about this.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kudos and comments are love. They motivate me to keep it up.  
> Let me know what you think up til now. :3


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